Latest CD releases reviewed
TEENAGE FANCLUB
Man-Made Pema ****
After nearly 20 years, the oldest teenagers in town are still riding the bandwagon through jangly rock territory, and they haven't yet run out of steam. They might have an ironically childish name, but the tunes on Man-Made speak of a band who are maturing gracefully while continuing to sharpen their playing and songwriting skills. What the Fannies do sure ain't rocket science - Byrdsian harmonies and Big Star-esque tuneology - but in the now-very-experienced hands of Norman Blake, Gerry Love and Raymond McGinley, it's been raised to a very fine art indeed. It's All in My Mind, Nowhere, Save, Fallen Leaves and Born Under a Good Sign are less jerky, more reflective versions of TFC's younger selves, and the measured mantle fits their ageing shoulders well. Far from repeating the cliches inherent in the genre, the Fannies seem to find more to explore with each outing. Long may their wagons roll. www.teenagefanclub.com Kevin Courtney
STEELY DAN
Showbiz Kids - The Steely Dan Story 1972-1980 MCA ****
From 1972's Can't Buy a Thrill to 1980's Gaucho, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker set the standard for deft melodies and immaculate, dexterous musicianship across seven albums. It was always deemed a great joke, however, that one of the smartest, most respected US rock groups of the 1970s were named after a steam-powered dildo out of William Burroughs's The Naked Lunch. This 33-track career Best Of gathers the most representative, and in some cases the best, tracks from SD's life. Some are awful (Bodhisattva still reeks of smug, patchouli-oiled self-indulgence); most, however (and that includes several tracks from 1977's Aja, arguably their best album) remain a supreme and effortless hybrid of rock, pop and jazz. www.steelydan.com Tony Clayton-Lea
RULERS OF THE PLANET
In 30 Minutes We Destroy the Planet Sofa Records **
Can a band have too many influences? Maybe, but when Rulers of the Planet are on form they sound like a less socially conscious Clash from Cork or the rabid offspring of The Cramps. The rub is that, halfway through the album, too many styles sluice through their buzzsaw guitars and it's hard to pick out ROTP's own sound. They're potentially a great live band, and tracks like Backbencher and Things Fall Apart would coax anyone into the mosh pit. The nagging sense of unoriginality is challenged by the blustery energy of it all. Some decent melodies and vocal spleen-venting nod to early punk, but you can't help feeling you've heard it all before. Rulers of the Planet could be just that when they start being themselves. www.rulersoftheplanet.com Sinéad Gleeson
MUGISON
Mugimama, Is This Monkey Music? Accidental ***
The latest Icelandic musician to make off down the road carrying the "eccentric" tag under his oxter is Ornelius Mugison, a former sailor, clown and courier who decided he would probably have a better chance of bringing about world peace if he stuck to making music. As with his Lonely Mountain debut, Mugison delights in drawing out the digital blues that lie between the many cracks which appear in his psychedelic canvas. Occasionally some exquisite songs do pop up - the bewitching I'd Ask, the hazy, bardic Salt - but Mugison prefers to coat his melodies with a sloppy lick of distortion and trip them up with glitches. Maybe he fears baring his soul. Yet, in the midst of all the darkness and discordance - and provided you're willing to persevere - there are twisted, folkspun tunes to treasure. www.mugison.com Jim Carroll
RICH WYMAN
Factory Auspicious Records **
Big in Holland and outlying areas, US singer- songwriter Rich Wyman isn't above wearing his influences on his shirt sleeves. Across 13 tracks, our rhythm scene investigators detected obvious traces of Genesis and Yes, a smear or two of Billy Joel, a scorch mark of Joe Cocker, and clear telltale signs of Bruce Springsteen in rock mode. This, then, is what we can safely describe as old-school AOR: vocals shouted out over a background of noodling guitar solos, pounding piano, some decent melodies and honest if heavy-handed lyrics. These days, of course, the 1980s are all the rage; this, however, represents the other side of the Eighties, a side some would rather forget. Alas, Rich Wyman is around to remind us how banal that other side truly was. That said, if you want to plug that aching gap between now and when the next Phil Collins record comes out, you know what to do. www.richwyman.com Tony Clayton-Lea
ÁINE WHELAN
Between the Moon and Mercury Matchbox Recordings **
The trouble with a second album is that it's had, at best, a year or two to come to fruition, whereas debuts are the product of a lifetime's gestation. Singer-songwriter Áine Whelan risks falling on her own sword with her debut, such is the extent of the buffing she's lavished on it. Smooth to the point of unctuousness, suave to the extent that the landscape is entirely wrinkle-free, Between the Moon and Mercury carries trace elements of Eddi Reader (whose guitarist, Johnny Scott, has been enlisted as producer), and even benefits from rifling through the back catalogue of songwriter Boo Hewerdine, from whom Whelan could learn a thing or two about succinct storytelling. Soft focus, radio-friendly - and a carbon copy of far too many who've gone before. www.ainewhelan.com Siobhán Long
